Added to inquiry!
DOCUMENTARY

New Life Blossoms in an Old Village:
Seven Years of Struggle and Hope

DOCUMENTARY 2013 48 mins Episode(s): 1 English English
The aging of Japan's population is steadily hollowing out the country's agriculture.

Realizing the gravity of the situation, a struggling farming community in Ishikawa Prefecture called Sugaike began trying to attract young residents. Hiroyuki Yago is one of the people who came. He moved from Osaka to Sugaike in order to grow organic vegetables, but there wasn't enough farmland available to rent and he has trouble making a living. Nevertheless, the locals have accepted Yago as one of their own, and he intends to stay. By 2012, there were three new families in Sugaike; abandoned land began to spring back to life, and a local dance festival that had not been held for 10 years was revived. Yago was there at the center of the dancing, cheered on by joyful longtime residents.

This program chronicles seven years in the life of a young man, who wanted to start a new life in the countryside by joining a community that is trying to adapt to the consequences of Japan's aging, shrinking population.

  •  

    Oni-kenbai: Prayer in Motion
    2012 30 mins

    The Oni-kenbai demon sword dance has been passed down from fathers to sons to grandchildren, with no additions or amendments for generations. Not simply a dance to pray for happiness, it's to ensure the spirits of ancestors of both dancers and viewers are kept alive, while driving away evil. This...
    more details
  •  

    Ubasute
    2014

    Best Local Production at the 2015 Tokyo Drama Awards. The "yutori" generation of Japan is said to be one of the laziest in society. Being raised in a pressure-free education system, they are often criticized for poor results and lack of drive in the workplace. Touma (Kensuke Owada), at age...
    more details
  •  

    The Fall of Manchuria Began Here
    2016

    2017 US International Film and Video Festival - Silver Screen 2017 New York Festival - Finalist For 70 years, three enormous Soviet Army bases remained undiscovered on the plains of Mongolia. The discovery of these bases supports speculation of Stalin's intent to invade Japan, completely overturning the Japanese Army's previously...
    more details
  •  

    The Castle town where Kingyo Goldfish swim Yamato koriyama city, Nara Pref.
    2014 30mins

    [Beauty of Japan Season 1] Kingyosukui, “goldfish scooping”, is one of the typical games often seen in summer festivals across Japan. The history of goldfish production in Yamato Koriyama city dates back to the mid-Edo period when the Yamato koriyama clansmen resided in their castle town. It is one of...
    more details